Periods in different… periods

April 17, 2017

Forget about Netflix. The best series to watch when you’re suffering from menstrual complaints is called Period Piece. This web series is a tongue-in-cheek history lesson about women in different periods of history… having their periods. Its creator, American Actress Liliana Tandon, got the idea in the only way one gets an idea for a brilliant new show: over a few glasses of wine with a friend.

With Period Piece, Tandon hopes to empower women to embrace their periods instead of feeling ashamed of their monthly bleeding. Another goal: bringing affordable feminine hygiene products to countries where such products aren’t readily available, so women and girls there can continue their school or work. When watching the movies, it soon becomes clear there’s still a lot of work that needs to be done until periods are completely accepted. In the past, but unfortunately also in modern society.

It used to be a lot worse

Luckily, there’s also enough reason to laugh. Season 1 brings you from colonial America, 18th century France, Victorian England and New York in the Roaring Twenties, to menstruation in modern times (keyword: denial!). Spoiler: if you thought buying tampons is embarrassing nowadays.., it used to be worse. A lot worse.

Season 2 (‘we’re back!’) includes a menstrual story from ancient Rome (small revelation: if women could really rid crop fields of pests and scare away hail storms, whirlwinds and lightning by uncovering their bodies, they’d have defintely used those maginal powers). Also in this season: menstual pad problems in the Wild West and the menstrual stain as fashion statement in 1800s Germany. With as bonus #makeperiodsgreatagain! with Donald Trump.

Watch them all on Youtube or click on a selection of season 1 and 2 below. Enjoy!